So, yesterday I was passing through Centreville, Virginia, on a road that I've driven any number of times over the years, but I happened to glance up into a woodsy area I'd never paid attention to before and realized there was an LDS church sort of hidden away in the trees. I also then realized that there was a heavy wrought iron fence along the road, and that the property was fenced all the way around (except I noticed that after it turned the corner at the end it switched to chain link, which I assume is less expensive than the fancy wrought iron across the front).

Is this normal? Most LDS properties I notice, including the one nearest my neighborhood, are not fenced in.

Yes! It's a new policy & they're starting out slowly in sparse mormom populations. (it will cost too much to fence in all the ward houses in Utah, all at once.)
It's part of the member retention program. The internet & recent church policies have got members leaving at rapid rates. The prophet thinks that by building fences to keep members in, they will stem the flow of resignations. Plus, they're planning on lowering the missionary age to 12.

Smart thinking on the part of TSCC to fence in the members.

Our church is fenced, too. However, there's sufficient space for us to stroll around the enclosed parking lot pecking at the dirt, so technically they can still market us as "free-range" or "cage-free" members.

Razor wire and watch towers will be next. Must stay for 3 full hours!

I miss the 80's before every church had to have an ugly Episcopalian steeple in the front. There use to also be attractive wood fences. Cedar. looked so much better than chain link.

I have it on good authority that there are at least 100 copies of the Book of Mormon in each ward library. They must be protected against theft when they are so desperately needed by the 15 members attending the weekly Gospel Doctrine class.
So that is good logical reasoning for fencing.

The fences are increasingly common... just as you describe. It keeps people from 'loitering'/ "non-members"/ 'beggars' away, as members (club) only give.

They aren't high enough.
Neither by are the members.

As previously mentioned (with my own twist on it), it's to keep [the animals] in... as well as out.

soon the fences will be like that big electric fence in jurasic park that kept in the tyrannosaurs.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/23/2016 02:18AM by Dave the Atheist.

One would think the high salary they are paid would be enough to keep in the tyrannosaurs.

There is a good-sized fence around our local temple, but not yet around the chapel.

I'm not inclined to invade, but they may want to retain the inmates. . .

In big cities with bad neighborhoods, it's common to see fences around all denominations of churches (not just the mo-mo's) for security reasons. Some even have security attendants working the parking lots during services. Were you in a "bad" neighborhood where you saw this?

They'll need those fences at the apocalypse for the same reason they have fenced compounds in "The Walking Dead". But will they stop Zombie Jesus?

All the Mormon Churches in the UK have fences and locked gates and have done for years. For a laugh look at the Mormon churches in Lima Peru! Im sure some of those fences are ten feet tall! Must make people feel very welcome!

England, Sheffield stake. Sheffield 1 and 3 have six foot fences; Chesterfield and Doncaster have little maybe 2 foot high fences that are easily accessed. Can't remember if Worksop is also low down too. That's just one stake. One of the Leeds wards has small fences too.

:)

Sheffield 2 has a big old fence too, and I believe it was for legal reasons, at least that was the story at the time. If we try to keep the local kids from playing football in the car park, and they get in and hurt themselves anyway, then the church can't be sued because they tried to keep them out.

Whether this is also true of a two foot fence I don't know. Ask one of the stakes lawyers maybe.

I believe it dates back to the arson attack at ward one. I couldn't recall ward 2 well enough to remember its fence.

X

You've either been out of church for a while, or out of area for a while... Or just to posh to slum it up at Grenoside :-)

Get in touch at antoneadyATyahooDOTcoDOTuk if you fancy a chinwag about old Sheffield Stake

Worksop is like Doncaster, a smallish height fence on top of a wall.

The church in our area had truckloads of dirt brought in so they could put a high berm all around the property. Then it was heavily planted with evergreens that are so thick you can't see the church. Then to top it all off, they put a chain link fence around the whole thing. The building is out in the country, across the road from a couple of large farms.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/23/2016 02:36PM by madalice.

Where I live, in a city no less, fences are not necessary. Indeed of the dozens of churches, I can't recall any that have a fence. During daylight hours few churches are locked as pastors and staff are almost always there. Steeples (on most churches) are much more evident than the stupid Mo mini-steeples which were even added to the TSCC chapels existing. There is no zoning limit here on the height of a steeple and they are sometimes much higher than those of historic note such as the steeple of the Old North Church in Boston.

Ha,maybe this is the ward!

I'd need fencing in to listen to the likes of this!



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDs4QJH2jj8

Apparently there have been a slew of break ins that resulted in the loss of cleaning supplies and a years worth of toilet brushes.

LDS Corp has to protect its assets.

Cheaper to put in cameras.

Fences are probably installed for security reasons. Doors are kept locked, as we know, except for specific times.

In my experience, the only ones fenced are in problematic neighborhoods, and places where vandalism of churches has occurred.

Ok, PART TWO:

Last night, my daughter wanted to meet some friends in town, so I dropped her off not far from there. Rather than make two round trips, I decided I'd just run some errands of my own. My wife also decided to do some shopping. So we dropped off my daughter, had some dinner, than I dropped her at the mall. Anyway...

I drove back by this church, and noticed that there is no gate at the driveway in, so the fence is not designed to keep people out, per se. The driveway was off a little side road that I'd never driven through before, but have eaten at a McD's at the other end of it, which is just off the highway.

The LDS property is nicely landscaped, and sort of "hidden away" between several more major roads. I hate to say it, but I suspect it's fenced off just to keep people from cutting through. The area is kind of odd. It's modern incarnation is that it's where three other cities have sort of collided. There's no real sense of it being a place unto itself, and development has been sort of haphazard (imo).

In the square mile or so that surrounds it, there's an odd mixture of modern development (mostly retail) and a zillion townhouses that popped up, probably in the 70's and 80's. These are relatively low-rent areas. The church property is immediately surrounded by townhouses (2/3) and a hotel and McD's (1/3). Not far away are many restaurants and an assortment of other retail places.

I'm guessing that the fence is designed to keep foot traffic away.

I think the fences are to keep people from breaking in and returning copies of the Book of Mormon.

I've seen more & more gates/barricades across the driveways to parking lots.

since a secretary was molested (raped?) near Bellevue, WA a few yrs back, security has been ramped up, all over I'm sure.

I don't think the barricades add much to security other than discouraging people at odd hours.

Fences would up the ante, that's for sure.

I have a client in a very dangerous area of a city. When he opened the business many advised him to put up a fence with sharp wire on top. He agreed with me that this would not keep anyone out who wanted to steal anything late at night but would keep people from going to the business in normal hours as it would accent the danger in the area. Result: business has been good and the establishment has never been burglarized in over ten years (though he was once robbed by man with a gun - who got caught within minutes). Frankly, over-security may invite crime as it indicates something worth stealing is inside.

The only time in my life I was burglarized, the burglar broke into the apartment from a fire escapee----the front door being unlocked. I met him coming out of the building and offered him a job ---- not knowing he had just taken everything of value I had.

At the Oakton Virginia stake center, a group of guys used to send someone on activity night to unlock a window, then at about midnight they would return and play basketball for a couple of hours. apparently this went on for a couple of years until member of SP drove by late one night and noticed lights on and confronted them. Seems like it could have been a good missionary opportunity, but I think they let it slip by.

preparing for the Zombie Apocalypse. Or is that the Second Coming?

Does this include morg churches out in the county!!?? in other words, surrounded by farm fields! Because I know that our ward doesn't have a fence around the building yet.